Ball State Women's Basketball (7-16, 2-9 MAC) started their two game road trip off on the wrong foot after a 91-61 loss to Akron on Wednesday. This was the Zips first win over the Cardinals in the past seven meetings. Here are four areas that stood out from Ball State’s fifth straight loss.
Slow start for the Cardinals
Ball State started the game with a quick layup by forward Oshlynn Brown but from then on things went downhill for the Cardinals. Akron took control and went on a 9-0 run before Ball State forward Nakeya Penny knocked down 1-2 free throws giving the Cardinals their last point of the first quarter with 6:50 left.
The Zips took advantage of the Cardinals slump and scored 20 buckets in the first frame giving them the 20-3 edge. This was the Cardinals largest deficit in the first quarter all season.
Cold shooting night
To make it simple, the Cardinals struggled to knock down shots consistently throughout the contest.
Ball State started the game shooting just 1-10 from the field in the first quarter and they couldn't find a rhythm on the offensive side.
The Cardinals finished the game shooting 20-61 from the field and 5-15 from deep. Ball State had four scorers in double-digits as Brown scored 16, Maliah Howard-Bass and Jasmin Samz added 12 each and Gabby Smith had a career-high 11.
Zips team effort
Akron had no downside to their offense as everyone who played in the matchup Wednesday night put points on the board. Six players scored in the double-digits causing problems for Ball State all over the court.
Zips guard Megan Sefcik led all scorers with 24 points on 8-10 shooting and made them four shots fall from behind the arc. Guard Alyssa Clay added a smooth 16 points, while Shaunay Edmonds and Haliegh Reinoehl put up 11 each and Caitlin Vari and Shayna Harmon ended with 10.
Akron was able to make more than half of their shots from the field scoring on 34-65, 10 of those came from deep.
Defensive struggles
The Zips were able to score at will against the Cardinals defense and this has seemed to be the trend for opposing teams over the past four games.
Ball State has given up 90 or more points three out of their last four games allowing an average of 89.7 points per game for opponents. Which is unusual for the Cardinals defense that only allows about 71 points per game throughout the season.
Contact Daric Clemens with any comments at diclemens@bsu.edu or on Twitter @DClemens.
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